With that in mind, let's take a closer look at Energy Transfer and see what CAPS investors are saying about the stock right now.

Energy Transfer facts

Headquarters (founded)

Dallas (2002)

Market Cap

$19.0 billion

Industry

Oil and gas transportation and storage

Trailing-12-Month Revenue

$25.2 billion

Management

Chairman/CEO Kelsey Warren

President/COO Marshall McCrea

Return on Equity (average, past 3 years)

15.5%

Cash / Debt

$528.0 million / $16.9 billion

Dividend Yield

7%

Competitors

DCP Midstream Partners

Enbridge

Kinder Morgan

Sources: S&P Capital IQ and Motley Fool CAPS.

On CAPS, 98% of the 925 members who have rated Energy Transfer believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward.

Just last week, one of those Fools, DJRRYAN, succinctly summed up the Energy Transfer bull case for our community:

Pipeline fee based operations provide both a high barrier to competition, as well as a degree of separation from the cost fluctuation of the materials transported. Also, if you believe as I do that the US economy is in a long term growth trend combined with the potential of dramatically reducing our energy dependency on global conflict zones, then it seems to me that investing in pipelines is the place to be for the next five years.

Of course, there are many different ways to play the energy sector, and The Motley Fool's analysts have uncovered an under-the-radar company that's dominating its industry. This company is a leading provider of equipment and components used in drilling and production operations, and poised to profit in a big way from it. To get the name and detailed analysis of this company that will prosper for years to come, check out the special free report: "The Only Energy Stock You'll Ever Need". Don't miss out on this limited-time offer and your opportunity to discover this under-the-radar company before the market does. Click here to access your report -- it's totally free.

Comments from our Foolish Readers

Help us keep this a respectfully Foolish area! This is a place for our readers to discuss, debate, and learn more about the Foolish investing topic you read about above. Help us keep it clean and safe. If you believe a comment is abusive or otherwise violates our Fool's Rules, please report it via the Report this Comment icon found on every comment.